1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a portable communication terminal such as a cellular phone, a Personal Communication Service (PCS) terminal, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), or a Hand Held Phone (HHP), and in particular, to a folder-type portable communication terminal having a flexible display unit.
2. Discussion of the Background
In terms of portability, portable communication devices have emphasized not only compactness, slimness, excellent gripping properties, and lightness, but also multimedia availability, thus providing a wider variety of functions, e.g., entertainment functions including games or moving picture viewing services.
In particular, future portable communication devices are expected to incorporate greater multi-functionality and multi-purpose utilization including video communication, games, Internet, and camera functions, as well as voice communication functions.
Conventional portable communication devices may be classified according to their appearance in terms of portability and convenience, for example, into bar-type communication devices and folder-type communication devices. The bar-type portable communication device has a single housing shaped like a bar in which data input/output devices and transmission/reception devices are mounted. The folder-type portable communication device has a folder coupled to a single bar-shaped housing by a hinge device in such a manner that the folder can be folded toward and unfolded away from the housing.
For example, in a folder-type portable communication device, a folder may be rotatably coupled to a main body by a hinge unit, keys may be disposed in the main body, and a display unit may be disposed in the folder, which may contribute to miniaturization and portability.
A folder-type portable communication device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,865,406, commonly assigned to the assignee of the present application.
However, a display unit that is mounted in a conventional portable communication device may be fixed in a main body housing and various data may be displayed within a fixed area of the display unit, causing visual inconvenience when viewing moving pictures in a Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) mode, a TV mode, or a Video On Demand (VOD) mode. In other words, due to the small screen displayed in the display unit, users may be inconvenienced when viewing displayed data.
Of course, the foregoing problems may be solved by increasing the size of the portable communication device, mounting a wide display unit, and disposing more keys. However, each of these solutions goes against the miniaturization trend and therefore, may cause inconvenience to users.